Storms

An ominous-looking sky above the western horizon. Minnesota had more tornadoes touch down that day than in any other day in recorded history. The high school in Wadena, (a town in central Minnesota) took a direct hit. Fortunately, it came after school let out for the summer and before the school reunion activities had begun. I don't believe anyone was hurt.

The gas station/convience store in Mentor, a town along US Highway 2 in the north-west part of the state, was also hit and totally destroyed. The owner threw himself on top of his daughter and and an employee, protecting them from the freezer that was knocked over. The daughter suffered minor cuts; the employee was taken to the hospital in serious condition; the owner, unfortunately, died from his injuries. The Dairy Queen across the street received no damage, not even a scratch.

Days 3 and 4

Day 3, Wednesday. With the rafters in place, the posts for the east wall are now dug in.
The ruts got deeper and the rain that night filled them again.




Day 4, Thursday. All the main posts are in position and most of the wall girts are fastened on. Also, the purlins are on the roof, extending beyond the building to allow for the overhang that is to come.
The water-filled ruts became deeper and that night, even more rain fell, filling them once again. To allow for the site to dry out, no further work was done until the following Monday.

Days 1 and 2

With limited internet access on the farm this year, these pictures were not posted at the end of each day-as a matter of fact, they didn't get posted until after my return to Maryland, a week at the Curriculum Mapping Academies and Institute, and a couple days rest.

Day 1, Monday.
Posts are cemented in place for the side walls. One post hole required digging out a big rock before the hole could be dug deep enough.

It rained that evening.




Day 2, Tuesday. Wall girts are in place on two of the walls. Posts are placed on the west wall and are positioned to make room for the big door. Ruts are left from the skidsteer working on the wet ground.

More night-time rain filled the ruts.

The Poles are in.

The poles for three sides are in. I told him that he can leave his skid steer there when he is finished. I promised to give it a good home-the very building he is constructing.

No deal.

I will see if I can get some pictures uploaded.

Why live in small-town USA?

So, I go into the FSA office to check on CRP for the family farm. Everyone is out to lunch except one very young lady whom I have never met before. So, I sit down at her desk and we start talking about the upcoming CRP bidding and about the possibility of putting some of our acres into the program. She immediately says, "That's for So and So Properties, right?"

To this point I had neither mentioned my name nor the name of the farm. Responding to the puzzled look on my face, she simply said, "It's your eyes. They look just like your sister's" "And that must mean that you are..." First and last name-pronounced correctly! Never met the lass before today. My sister last talked with her over a year ago.

Rafters arrived yesterday; electricity this afternoon, and I believe the sheetmetal this evening-I need to check on that. Builders are scheduled to begin tomorrow morning.

New Power-line Posts

The red flag does mean a new post is on its way-actually two new posts. The electrician told the power company that I need power on Tuesday. It might have happened were it not for the storm. I haven't heard of downed lines, but if there are any, they will naturally have priority over the needs of a new customer.

More news as it develops.

This isn't Kansas

Thirty nine is the official count-that's a record number of tornados in one day in Minnesota. We watched the weatherman, using a live camera shot, show where in a cloud a tornado would appear and right on que, one formed, touched down, and dissappeared back into the cloud in less than five minutes. The storms would pop up, dump lots of rain and sometimes hail, then seem to be past when the tornados reached out to give a parting shot.

One town, Wadena, was preparing for their high school reunion. The school took a direct hit: In a couple weeks it would have been filled with alumni.

A lot of damage to towns, and a number of farmsteads. Unfortunately, three people were killed.

The good news is that the first load of material for the shed arrived on Friday-four days early.